Anger
by skyechild
Summary: Bruce gets drugged during a charity event. The effects? Pure anger. He begins to take it out on anyone who approaches him. What will happen between Bruce and Dick when Bruce brutally attacks Dick in the cave?
1. Chapter 1

Charity Balls, Bruce always hated them. So many fake smiles, so many women trying to spend the night with him, it was pathetic. However, they did raise a lot of money for some good causes, so Bruce would have to tough it out. Just wear a smile, fake or not, sip his 'champagne', and socialize with other Gotham elites. It just wasn't Bruce's idea of a productive night.

Bruce took a sip of his beverage, which was just Ginger Ale made to look like champagne. He and his ward, Dick, had to go patrolling later that evening to track down some big drug dealers, so he couldn't consume any alcohol. He never did, it was just pointless to him. He scanned the ball room, looking at his guests and trying to identify those who weren't too familiar. He spotted Dick over by the dessert table talking to Barbara Gordon, one of Dick's best friends. He knew that Dick hated being at these charity events, too. Good thing he had Barbara at this event to keep him occupied. They were so close. Even Bruce thought that they would make an adorable couple, but they were much too young, just 14 years old. It was obvious that his ward was in love with her. When they first met, he wouldn't stop talking about her. It was funny, really. Bruce smirked as he saw Barbara shove a small piece of cake onto Dick's face, covering his nose in frosting. Adorable.

"Now what is Gotham's richest bachelor doing standing all by himself?"

Bruce turned to see a beautiful woman approaching him from behind. Blonde hair, striking blue eyes, long, elegant red dress that sparkled in the light from the chandeliers.

"Just admiring the wonderful turnout for this event, I believe we've already reached our goal of $250,000 for foster children in this city." Bruce said to the woman.

"Well isn't that wonderful. Now was it your idea to host this fundraiser?" The woman said, stepping closer to Bruce without breaking eye contact.

"Well if you don't know, I have a foster child myself so I keep up with the foster programs in Gotham and when they are underfunded, I help however I can." Bruce said with a smile.

"How sweet of you. Such a selfless thing for you do to. My name's Rebecca. Rebecca Foultey."

Foultey. That name rang a bell. Randall Foultey was a suspect in the drug cartel that he and Dick were going to investigate.

"Foultey you say? That name rings a bell. Are you from around here?" Bruce asked.

"No, actually. I'm from Fawcett City. My brother and I traveled here to visit some friends. Shall we find a table?" She asked, looking seductively into Bruce's eyes. Perfect. Maybe he can get some information.

"Sure."

Bruce brought Rebecca over to the table specifically reserved for him and whomever he wanted to sit with. He pulled out her chair for her and then sat down next to her.

"So you came all this way from Fawcett City just to visit some friends? That's quite a travel." Bruce began his secret interrogation.

"Well, my brother had some business to take care of along the way, and I decided to tag along and convinced him to make a stop in Gotham since we were close. It's nice seeing old friends after such a long time." Rebecca said. A waiter came to the table and gave both of them a tall glass of champagne. It looks like Bruce would have to drink a little bit before patrolling later.

"What kind of business is he into?" Bruce asked. He took a sip of his champagne. There was a pause.

"He…owns properties here and there, I believe he just sold a bunch, which is what brought us out here." She replied. Rebecca took a large sip of her champagne. This was the first time she broke eye contact with Bruce, so now he was very suspicious. He took another sip of his champagne before continuing with his questions.

"So how did you find the time to travel with your brother? Do you have a career of your own?" Bruce watched her facial expression very carefully. Most people wouldn't have noticed, but he saw that she was thinking hard, trying to come up with fake answers to his questions.

"I mostly do volunteer work, hold charities like this one for similar causes." She answered. It was a lie, it was written all over her face. She took another large sip from her drink and Bruce copied. He was getting frustrated. As he was about to keep on questioning her, he felt a light tap on his arm. Bruce turned quickly and saw Dick standing next to him. What did he want? Didn't Dick see that he was busy trying to get information from this woman?

"What!" Bruce snapped. Dick slightly jumped back, confused by Bruce's small outburst.

"Uh, sorry to interrupt, I was just wondering if-" Dick was cut off by Bruce.

"I am busy, Dick. Go find someone else to bother!" Bruce spat out and turned back to Rebecca. Dick was shocked. Bruce never spoke to him like that. He looked up at Rebecca, but she averted her gaze to her drink. Dick decided to just obey Bruce's order and he went to find Barbara again.

"I'm sorry, where were we?" Bruce asked as he took another sip of his champagne.

"Uh, well, we were just talking about careers. Yours must be tough, running a multi-billion dollar company while finding the time to raise a foster child." She replied.

"Oh don't change the subject. Please, go back to lying to me about your life." Bruce spat out. He was getting angry.

"I beg your pardon?" Rebecca replied, taken aback by Bruce's sudden outburst.

"Aren't you and your brother drug dealers? I mean, that's why you came all the way to Gotham, right?" Bruce interrogated. He was barely shouting at this point. He and Rebecca stared into each other's eyes for a moment. Then, in a heartbeat, Rebecca's face went from frightened to amused. She smirked as she glanced down at Bruce's drink.

"Wow, you're smarter than what they give you credit for. Tell me, Brucie, did you enjoy your drink?" Her smirk grew as she stood from the table and turned to leave. Bruce slapped the table, tipping his drink over. She slipped something into his drink. But what was it? Now he was furious. Guests were now staring at him as he stood up and marched after Rebecca. She noticed he was following and began to walk briskly toward the kitchen where the waiters were coming and going. Once she entered, Bruce almost ran after her, but he was too late. Once he reached the kitchen, she was gone. Probably slipped out of the back door. Bruce left the kitchen and went back out to the ball room. He needed to leave and get to the batcave to figure out what she drugged him with. God, he was so angry. He felt like hitting something. Someone. Anything. His heart was beating fast and his adrenaline was off the charts. He made it to the outside steps when he heard Richard calling out to him.

"Bruce! Bruce, what's wrong? Are we leaving?" Dick asked as he ran up to him. Bruce spun around and got right in Dick's face. Dick immediately stopped talking and started backing up. He could see the rage burning in Bruce's eyes.

"YOU! You distracted me while I was interrogating her! That woman I was talking to! She was part of the drug ring! She must have spiked my drink while you were busy complaining!" Bruce screamed in Dick's face. Dick's back hit the side of the building hosting the charity ball and realized he ran out of room to get away from Bruce. He was terrified. He had never seen Bruce so angry. So angry at him.

"B-bruce, I-I-I'm sorry, I didn't know, I thought y-you were just talking to her." Dick stuttered. Bruce reached out and grabbed Dick by the throat, hard.

"I am SO SICK OF YOU complaining EVERY TIME we have an event! You think I like being here? I DON'T! But you need to GROW UP AND START DEALING WITH IT!" By now, Dick's feet were off the ground and he was struggling to breathe. Dick looked Bruce right in the eyes. That look, the anger in his eyes, it was like he was an animal gone rabid. After a long moment, Bruce released his grip on Dick's throat and threw him to the ground. Dick gasped for air as Bruce turned and walked away. What did that woman drug him with? What are they dealing on the streets of Gotham?


	2. Chapter 2

Bruce arrived at the manor and parked his Jaguar in the garage, along with his many expensive cars. He jumped out of the car, slammed the door shut, and marched inside. He needed to get to the cave and run a blood test to see what he was drugged with. He should have seen this coming, but why would she want to drug him? What could she possibly gain by doing this? He didn't know, but his curiosity was just making him angrier.

"Master Bruce, what are you doing home so early?" Alfred approached him as he darted through the massive living room and over to the grandfather clock that leads to the batcave. "Master Bruce, are you alright?"

Bruce turned and grabbed his faithful butler by the collar on his uniform. "QUIT CALLING ME MASTER!" He screamed in Alfred's face. Alfred was frightened by Bruce's sudden outburst. "I got distracted and some woman drugged me. Now go set up the medical room!" Bruce screamed. He let go of Alfred's collar and Alfred immediately went down to the batcave to do as Bruce demanded. He was slightly shaken by Bruce's violence, but if he was drugged, then he needed to focus on helping him.

* * *

The charity ball was a disaster. A huge brawl broke out between the adults. Nothing in particular happened, everyone just started hitting each other. Both men and women were beating each other senseless. Even Commissioner Gordon was in a fist fight with a waiter.

After Dick's encounter with Bruce, Dick went back inside to find Barbara. By the time he got to the ball room, everyone was already drugged. Dick immediately began scanning the hectic crowd for Barbara. As he was trying to find her, some random guest approached Dick and punched him in the chest. He stumbled back and ran away. He had to find Barbara before she got hurt. He dodged trays and food and even chairs flying through the air and took cover under one of the dessert tables. Once he was under there he heard Barbara's voice next to him.

"Dick! What's going on here?! We need to get my dad and leave!" She shouted over the noise. "Oh my god, what happened to your throat?!"

"Don't worry about it." Dick answered in a raspy voice. "When I count to three, you and I need to make a run for it. Get to the kitchen and slip out through the side entrance. It's closest. Got it?" Barbara shook her head. "What about my dad?" She shouted.

"Everyone's drugged. There's nothing we can do until Br-Batman shows up. I'm sure he's already on his way." Dick answered. He opened up the table cloth and peeked toward the kitchen. He mapped out a path to take that would hopefully keep them clear from the adults. Dick grabbed Barbara's wrist so he wouldn't lose her in the crowd.

"Alright, ready? One, two, THREE!" They both darted out from under the table and headed for the kitchen door. They reached the kitchen door and entered. Right as it closed, a waiter came out from behind it and grabbed Dick. The waiter pushed Dick to the ground and landed on top of him. He began punching Dick in the face repeatedly. Barbara began trying to pull the waiter off of Dick, but he was too heavy. She then looked around and spotted a large frying pan and grabbed it. With one strong swing, she hit the waiter over the head with it and knocked him out cold.

"Come on!" She yelled as she grabbed Dick's wrist and dragged him toward the exit. He managed to get back on his feet and they finally made it. "Are you okay?" Barbara yelled, panicking.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. We need to get home." Dick said. He spit out some blood on the sidewalk and tried to catch his breath. They could hear the faint sound of police sirens. "The police won't be able to contain everyone, there's too many people."

"Then what are we going to do? My dad's in there! Isn't Bruce in there, too?" Barbara asked.

"Bruce went home. He attacked me before he left. We need to get Batman." Dick answered, looking around at the rooftops. He hoped Bruce was coming up with some kind of antidote with Alfred and would be here soon. The people could be beating each other to death. No, Bruce wouldn't have an antidote for a few hours or so. Waiting for Batman was pointless. Dick searched for his phone in his pocket but couldn't find it.

"I need your phone." Dick demanded. "Mine's gone." Barbara got her phone from her bag and handed it to Dick.

"Who are you calling?" Barbara asked.

"Help." Dick vaguely answered. He dialed a number and hoped the person he was calling would answer.


	3. Chapter 3

Wally watched in complete shock as the news footage showed a massive fight at a charity event in Gotham. Didn't Dick say he was going to that with Bruce? Wally ran to his room and grabbed his phone. He needed to call Dick and see if he was alright. Before he could even unlock his phone, it rang. It was an unidentified number. He didn't have time for that. He needed to call Dick. Wally ignored the call and dialed Dick's number. It rang and rang with no answer. He went to call again, but the random number called him again. He decided to answer, maybe it was Dick.

"Hello?"

"Wally! It's Dick. I need your help. Bruce and everyone at the charity ball are infected with some kind of drug. Get the others, the police won't be enough. Now, Wally!" Dick shouted into the phone.

"On it." Wally said. He hung up the phone and immediately ran to the nearest zeta beam to get to the mountain.

The zeta beam at the mountain announced Wally's arrival. M'gann heard it and left the kitchen to go greet him.

"Hey Wal-"

"Hey sweet cheeks, no time to talk. Where is everyone? Robin needs us in Gotham, Batman and a bunch of others have been drugged and they're all fighting each other. We need to go." Wally said urgently. M'gann took a second to process this.

"Conner and Kaldur are here, but Artemis isn't. I'll go get the guys." M'gann said. She instantly left to go get them. Wally ran to his room to grab his uniform and got suited up. He then waited for his team in the bioship. A minute passed before his teammates, minus Artemis, were on the ship. The bay doors opened and they took off quickly.

"Is Robin alright? You said Batman was infected, so how come Robin isn't?" Kaldur asked Wally.

"I don't know all of the details. Robin just needs us. A charity event in Gotham got attacked and everyone's drugged. They're all fighting each other. The police can't contain them. It's all over the news. I'm going to call Artemis." Wally responded. He pulled out his phone and dialed Artemis' number.

"I'm a little busy, Wally! But some help would be nice! I'm at-"

"We're already on our way. And you can't be too busy to answer your phone on the first ring." Wally argued.

"Oh just shut up and get here." Artemis hung up the phone. Well that was quick.

"Artemis is already there. How long until we are?" Wally asked.

"8 minutes. I'm going as fast as I can." M'gann replied.

"So what's the plan?" Conner asked. "How are we going to stop the people from fighting?"

"Maybe Robin's already coming up with an antidote. If Batman's infected, then Robin would stop at nothing to cure him first. An infected Batman is more dangerous than these people." Kaldur explained. Everyone hoped he was right.


	4. Chapter 4

Barbara was confused. "Who's Wally? And how is he going to help?"

"No time to explain. We need to get you home where you'll be safe." Dick answered.

"I can walk. It's not far. What about you? You said Bruce was infected too. I don't want you around him if he did that to your neck." Barbara said with worry.

"I need to get back and check on Alfred. You go home, I'll call you later, I swear. Go!" Dick ordered. Barbara nodded and took off.

Dick stayed in the shadows of the streets and made his way back to the manor. His head was hurting and his mouth and nose were still bleeding. He was thankful that he was back at the manor with Alfred. Alfred-he needed to find him, to make sure Bruce didn't hurt him. Dick ran through the manor and entered the batcave through the clock. He ran down the steps and went for the medical room. When he entered, he saw what he feared he would see. Alfred was unconscious on the floor while Bruce was impatiently running tests. Dick ran over to Alfred to check on him.

"What are you doing back here?! Why aren't you out there helping everyone?!" Bruce screamed at Dick. Bruce flipped the metal table he was working on and sent everything crashing to the floor. Dick jumped, but didn't leave Alfred's side.

"Bruce, y-you need to calm down. I know you're drugged, but listen to me, you don't want to hurt us. We'll come up with an antidote and help you and everyone who's infected. You need to take back control of your own mind and calm down. Just focus on the antidote." Dick said calmly. He looked down at Alfred and lightly shook him, trying to wake him up. Alfred only stirred. Bruce marched over to Dick and grabbed him by his arm, pulling him to his feet. He then shoved him up against the wall, once again getting in Dick's face.

"You're a poor excuse of a hero. You should be OUT THERE HELPING EVERYONE BUT INSTEAD YOU'RE HERE!" Bruce began punching Dick in the face and stomach until Dick couldn't stand anymore. He fell to floor. Bruce then began kicking and stomping on Dick's stomach. Dick tried to get away, but he was too weak. Bruce was too strong. If he didn't stop, Dick would die.

Bruce didn't stop until Dick lost consciousness. He just wanted him to shut up. Instead of doing what heroes were supposed to do, he showed up in the batcave and that angered Bruce. Bruce snapped out of his angry thoughts when he heard a beep. It was a machine saying that the antidote was ready. He ran over and pulled out one of the vials. He made over 100 vials for now to help the people at the charity ball, but he first needed to help himself. He loaded a syringe and injected the antidote into his arm. He didn't feel it right away, but he was sure it would kick in soon. Bruce grabbed the rest of the vials, stepped over Dick and Alfred, and left the medical room to get suited up.


	5. Chapter 5

The team arrived at the charity ball and were shocked at what they saw. Everyone who was still conscious looked like animals. There was blood everywhere.

"Oh my goodness…" M'gann barely spoke.

"Ms. Martian, we need to focus. Kid Flash, find Artemis and Robin." Aqualad ordered. Kid Flash took off in search of the two missing teammates. Superboy, Kaldur and Ms. Martian ran into the building and began trying to break up the fights. This wasn't going to be easy.

Kid Flash found Artemis hiding in the alley behind the building.

"There you are! Is the team here?" She asked, sounding overwhelmed.

"Yeah, but we don't know what to do. This is too crazy. They're like wild animals!" Wally responded. "Where's Robin?"

"Haven't seen him. We could really use some of his knock out gas." Artemis said.

"Robin called me on someone else's phone, so I can't call him. Batman's infected. Hopefully Robin's already working on an antidote." Kid Flash explained.

"Well we need to get in there and help. Something needs to be done." Artemis said. Kid Flash agreed and they both ran into the building, joining their teammates.

* * *

Batman was almost back at the charity ball. He weaved in and out of traffic in his batmobile. He had several syringes filled with the antidote ready to inject the people. He was so angry about everything. How could he be so stupid? He shouldn't have drank the champagne. Why would Rebecca want to drug everyone there? The money. She must've stolen it. $250,000. God, that made Bruce angry. He gripped his steering wheel and gritted his teeth. Hopefully the antidote would kick in soon.

* * *

"Batman's here!" Aqualad shouted through the comm. Batman marched by him and pulled out two syringes, one in each hand, and began injecting people with a blue liquid that Aqualad assumed was the antidote. "He's got it! He's got the antidote!"

"It's about time!" Superboy yelled.

Kid Flash ran over to Batman. "Where's Robin?"

Batman didn't respond. He was starting to feel less angry, so he ignored Kid Flash instead of attacking him. He just focused on the antidote. Batman found Commissioner Gordon near the dessert table with someone in a headlock and stuck a syringe into his arm. The antidote apparently took time to kick in, so when he was done, he left everyone to finish fighting. Batman was exhausted. "Aqualad, get your team to keep everyone in the building until everyone's settled down. No one comes or leaves." He ordered. Aqualad shook his head and told his team to do what Batman had ordered.

Bruce was exhausted. He needed to get back to the manor and rest. He could barely keep his eyes open. He got into the batmobile and left the team to finish what Rebecca started. He would have to worry about her later.

* * *

Bruce barely made it home without falling asleep behind the wheel. The antidote must make you exhausted beyond belief. Sleep sounded so good right about now. Maybe he could get Alfred to make him some tea…

Alfred. Oh god. Bruce ran down to the batcave and into the medical room. When he got there, he saw Alfred on his feet walking briskly back and forth.

"Alfred-" Bruce ran at him while taking off his cowl, looking at his butler's head, noticing the single bruise above his eye.

"Master Bruce, I trust you finished the antidote. If not, then you need to leave." Alfred demanded, pulling a gun out of his pocket and aiming it at Bruce. Bruce put his hands up and backed up a bit.

"Alfred, I'm cured, I swear. Are you alright? Where's Dick?" He asked frantically. Then Bruce remembered. He remembered attacking Dick. Twice. He looked around and noticed Dick laying on a bed on the other side of the room, unconscious and hooked to IV's and machines.

"Alfred, put the gun down. I'm fine, I swear." He looked Alfred in the eyes. The anger that Alfred saw earlier that night was gone. He slowly lowered the gun, but didn't take his eyes off of Bruce.

"Master Dick is severely injured. He needs surgery for internal bleeding and I don't have the equipment necessary at the moment." Alfred explained. Bruce ran past Alfred and over to Dick. Oh god, what did he do? Dick's face was covered in cuts and bruises, his neck had a large hand print around it, and his breathing was labored.

"I need to get him to the mountain. Help me get him to the zeta beam!" Bruce ordered. Alfred and Bruce began unhooking Dick from his IVs so Bruce could carry him through the zeta beam. Once they were done, Dick could hardly breathe. Bruce put his cowl back on, scooped Dick up in his arms, and ran for the zeta beam faster than The Flash could have. They were both gone in seconds.


	6. Chapter 6

The team managed to follow Batman's orders for once, keeping the infected people in the building until the antidote kicked in. Once everyone settled down, they began passing out left and right. Every police officer and ambulance in the city was there taking the injured guests to the hospital.

"Do you think our work here is done? I'd like to get home and wash all of this blood off of me." Artemis said through the comm.

"Yes. I believe the police can handle it from here. Is everyone alright?" Aqualad responded.

"Just fine." Superboy responded.

"A little banged up, but I'll be fine." Ms. Martian said.

"I'm good. I gotta go get a hold of Rob, make sure he's alright." Kid Flash said. With that, he took off running to the nearest zeta tube.

Wally got back to the mountain before everyone else. He zeta beamed instead of taking the ship. Wally knew that Batman was infected and he had to make sure Dick was alright. He hoped Batman didn't attack him. Even though Robin was one of the best fighters out there, he didn't stand a chance against an angry Batman.

Wally tried calling Dick's cell again, but there was still no answer. He must have lost it at the charity ball when the fighting broke out. Should he just go to Dick's house? Before Wally could make a decision, Superman zeta beamed to the mountain.

"Hey Superman, what's-"

"No time to talk, Kid Flash. I need to help Batman." Superman said as he marched past Wally.

"We already took care of the charity event. Everyone's on their way to the hospital." Wally told him.

"No, I need to help Batman with Robin. He's injured." Superman said as he continued walking. Wally ran after Superman.

"So they're here?" Wally asked.

"That's what Batman said. I don't know what's going on, only that Robin's badly hurt."

They reached the medical room and Superman entered, followed closely by Wally. They both saw Batman hooking Dick up to machines.

"Batman. What happened?" Superman asked when he saw Dick.

"I was drugged with some kind of anger drug. I did this. Now help me! He's bleeding internally." Batman replied frantically. Superman ran over and used his x-ray vision to see Dick's bones and find where the internal bleeding was. Wally just stood by the door in shock. Dick looked so broken. His shirt was off and his chest and stomach were blue and purple. Definitely some heavy internal bleeding.

"Bruce, his stomach. He needs surgery."

"I know that! He's already prepped, we need to do it now!" Bruce was freaking out at this point.

"Wally, out. Now." Superman ordered. Wally didn't move. He had never seen Dick look so…dead.

"Wally!" Bruce shouted. Wally snapped out of his trance and left the medical room.

"He'll be okay, Bruce. We'll fix him." Superman said, trying to calm Bruce.

"Save it, Clark. Just get going. He doesn't have much time." Bruce ground out.

* * *

The surgery went well. Four of Dick's ribs were broken, which caused them to puncture his lung and stomach. Superman managed to re-align his ribs so they would heal properly and patch up his stomach and lung. The surgery lasted for hours, thank god Dick managed to push through.

Bruce sat in a chair on the other side of the medical room with his cowl down, staring at the floor deep in thought. How could a simple charity event turn into something so chaotic without him catching onto it? The waiters must have been in on it, drugging everyone's drinks before handing them out to the crowd. It seemed like the plan was well thought out. The drug dealers knew what they were doing. Bruce needed to catch them before they start handing this drug out on the streets. It would take hours, maybe even a full day to come up with enough of the antidote to cure thousands of people.

But Dick. Bruce didn't want to leave Dick. He looked up at his small body lying on the bed, hooked up to a bunch of monitors and IVs, his small chest rising up and down, trying to get a full breath of air. Bruce getting drugged, coming up with the antidote and curing a bunch of rabid people was something he could sweep under the rug. But beating his faithful butler unconscious and nearly killing his child? He would never be able to forget about this. The guilt would eat him alive until Dick was back on his feet fighting crime. Even after he's all better, Bruce would have to be even more cautious to guarantee nothing like this ever happens to him again. His poor boy…

"Bruce."

Bruce looked up to see Clark standing in the doorway. Clark could see the sorrow in Bruce's face, which is something you just don't see often.

"I called in the league, they are in Gotham right now fighting this and hunting down the leaders. I know you don't like us in Gotham, but we needed to act quickly to prevent this drug from spreading to other cities." Clark explained, afraid that this would upset Bruce.

"It's fine." Bruce replied quietly. "I already have two names. I believe they are the ones in charge. Rebecca and Randall Foultey. Rebecca's the one who drugged me."

"I'll alert the league and the police and have them search for the suspects." Clark said. Bruce stared back at the floor.

"He's going to be fine, Bruce. The surgery went fine, there's no more internal bleeding. He will heal and after some physical therapy, he will be right by your side again." Clark tried to reassure him, but it wasn't working. After a moment of silence, Clark stood up and left to go give the names of the suspects to the league and the police.

A few long moments after Clark left, Bruce stood up and moved his chair to the side of Dick's bed. He sat down and gently grabbed Dick's hand, rubbing it softly with his thumb. Normally Bruce would never be this affectionate, but the guilt was eating him alive and he didn't know what else to do. He just wanted to hold his hand and thank the Gods that Dick survived his brutal attack. Bruce didn't know what he would do if Dick didn't.


End file.
